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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22847386">Tall Blonde</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/softbiker/pseuds/softbiker'>softbiker</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-02-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 17:15:41</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,732</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22847386</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/softbiker/pseuds/softbiker</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Steve takes a coffee break. It's good to try new things.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Steve Rogers/Reader</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>24</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Tall Blonde</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This is essentially a continuation of the story 'Extra Whip' that I just posted, so I recommend reading that first to be familiar with the reader in this story :)</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A month goes by.</p><p>In missions, gunpowder grit beneath his fingernails; in Stark Foundation fundraisers, his bowtie digging too tight at his neck; in karaoke nights - and <em>avoiding</em> karaoke nights, sneaking up to the roof with Bucky for a smoke. Somehow the habit crept back in, between the two of them.Deeper than muscle, it’s a <em>bone</em> memory - shoulders pressed together on a fire escape, nostalgic for nicotine and other things that won’t roll into cigarette papers. No one knows about their little habit, except for maybe Nat - who cares less about their upstanding reputations than everyone else, and she’ll even share a pack every once in a while. Steve marvels at cigarettes now, the way he marvels at everything that should’ve killed him before he became a miracle.</p><p>So February passes. He eases up on Health Food Reform, satisfied that the good habits seem to <em>mostly</em> stick. 41 continues to slurp on her spinach milkshakes during briefings, and it brings out his big brother smile every time. Every time he wonders who might have made it for her.</p><p>March blusters in with excessive force, with the wind whipping storms on every front and a crisis on every continent. For the first two weeks of the month, Steve doesn’t set foot at the compound, shuffling between safe houses and sleeping on the quinjet, his neck aching in complaint. The team forgoes their long-anticipated weekend retreat to Tony’s cabin in Aspen in favor of a terror attack in Johannesburg.</p><p>“Man, I was not made for this kind of heat,” Sam mutters, tugging at the harnesses of his uniform as sweat streams down his neck and into his shirt.</p><p>“You would’ve been in the hot tub in Aspen, anyway,” Clint teases, taking stock of his quiver, his words slurred by the bubblegum in his mouth.</p><p>“Yeah, with a couple of snow bunnies, that’s for damn sure,” Sam bites back, shoving his goggles into a side pocket on his tac pants.</p><p>“<em>Focus</em>, Sam,” Steve sighs over the comm. He’s got eyes on them - opposite rooftop, approximately 100 feet above the epicenter of the chaos. “The sooner we wrap this up, the sooner you can sit in a jacuzzi with your rabbits.”</p><p>Tony’s laughter over the comm line is so loud, Nat has to remove her earpiece for a full minute.</p><p>“What?” Steve turns to Nat, bewildered. She’s got a white streak of dust in her hair. “<em>What?</em> What did I say?”</p><p>She just shakes her head, taming the curl of her lips with a click of her tongue.</p><p>“<em>Nobody tell him</em>,” Tony insists, his voice still a wheeze. “<em>Jesus</em>, I am gonna hold onto that for weeks. That’s going in the digital scrapbook - F.R.I.D.A.Y.?”</p><p>
  <em>“Already saved the audio file, boss.”</em>
</p><p>Steve just hangs his head, resigned. No chance of living that one down.</p><p>Hours later, they pile into the quinjet in beleaguered pairs, Clint propped on Sam’s arm, 28 with Natasha - both dusty and bruised but no major injuries, followed by Wanda and 41, with Tony bringing up the rear. Steve takes stock with a keen gaze as they trudge up the ramp into the jet, Buck slouched in the seat beside him, his flesh fingers blackened with gunpowder. More than 10 hours on the ground, with thousands of safe civilian lives to show for it - but no arrests had been made, no suspects found, no bad guys to put away. Not today. A stalemate, which Steve hates. He loathes the ambiguity, the loose ends of this job, the way the world can just never <em>stay safe.</em></p><p>A knee jostles against his own, and he looks over at Bucky; he’s got one eye cracked open, narrow window on a sky blue gaze peering back at Steve.</p><p>“You good, Rogers?” he mutters, lazily rolling his jaw.</p><p>“Me? Yeah, Buck, I’m fine.”</p><p>“Uh huh. Well quit grindin’ your teeth like that.” Bucky sighs and lets his eyes slip closed again. “The one thing your ma never had to fix, those damn perfect teeth.”</p><p>It draws a dull, tired smile, just like he intended, and Steve elbows Bucky in the ribs - the two of them exchanging a couple of tired blows, before settling into their seats, pressed against each other shoulder to knee, like they’re still trying to fit in a foxhole. Steve takes a little of Bucky’s weight as he leans over to let 28 pass them and settle into a seat across the aisle, buckling herself in and sending a tired smile their way.</p><p>He accepts a Starkpad from Tony as he passes by on his way to the cockpit. A swipe of the screen reveals a face - a white man, late 40’s, dark hair with white streaks at the front. Nothing noticeable about him otherwise. Beneath the face is a name: Israel Hayes. He stands and stalks his way up the aisle of the jet, careful not to disturb any of his sleeping teammates as he follows Tony. The Iron Man suit dissolving back into the nanite housing unit on his chest, Tony is left only in a soft black shirt and pants - he looks vulnerable, small, when Steve leans into the cockpit, his shoulders crowding the space.</p><p>“This our guy?”</p><p>“Seems like it. F.R.I.D.A.Y. cross-referenced his known aliases with similar activities in Europe and Asia - but he’s good. Never shown his face good.”</p><p>“Not even on CCTV?” Steve quirks a brow.</p><p>Tony shakes his head, lips pursed. “Nope. My guess? He’s got some kind of algorithm like the one SHIELD instituted for our agents in the backseat. You know how we never know what a SHIELD agent looks like?” He gestures towards the passengers with his thumb and Steve nods. “Same thing. As soon as his face is captured on a camera, his server finds it and scrubs it clean.”</p><p>“That possible? For someone who’s not SHIELD?”</p><p>“If he’s got the connections it <em>seems</em> like he has? Then yeah.” Tony huffs out a breath. “Not that I’m worried - F.R.I.D.A.Y. has found smaller needles in bigger haystacks.”</p><p>Steve just nods, staring at the man’s picture on the tablet in his hands.</p><p>He stares at that tablet for days - at briefings, at the picture, at news headlines, at the picture, at a Buzzfeed article comparing his butt with Sam’s and Bucky’s (sent in a text attachment by Sam, accompanied only by the peach emoji), and once more at the picture.</p><p>He stares at it till he sees the man’s face behind his eyelids, till he could sketch it on a napkin without looking. And he does, actually, by accident - in the margins of his notes during a security briefing with Fury, he glances down to find his fingers tracing the deep set of the man’s eyes, the dark shadow of his brows. Algorithm or no, he won’t be able to hide forever.</p><p>It’s the algorithm he’s thinking of as he continues to take his notes in the meeting, the sketch staring up at him in stark blue pen; there’s another face he wanted to look for, more than once he’d decide to search the SHIELD records, before changing his mind - just opening his browser and poising his fingers to start the search has him feeling like a damn <em>creep.</em> Like the internet stalker in that show Wanda was obsessed with. His ma raised a gentleman - there’s no way he was gonna be <em>that guy.</em></p><p>The next morning, Sam begs off on their run, and Bucky is mysteriously absent from his room when Steve knocks, so he goes for his run alone. It’s not so bad - he’s got a fancy pair of headphones that Tony made last Christmas, and he loves watching the sunrise over the city. He even turns and crosses the bridge into Brooklyn, making a lap through Prospect Park before looping back towards Manhattan. Not so bad. Good, even. Really, really good.</p><p>He slows down and stretches in front of the tower, propping his legs up on the bench out front and massaging his calves. There’s a little bit of a burn, but it melts at the pressure of his fingers, and the pleasant kind of soreness settles in. The kind he’s enjoyed and lived in since his body became sturdy and strong and decidedly anti-fragile - he’ll never say it out loud, but he still gets a little thrill when he manages to break a bone or dislocate a shoulder, goosebumps of pain shooting down his spine as he pops them back into place with a grunt of satisfaction.</p><p>Hand hovering over the biometric scanner, he’s about to go back inside, take the elevator up to his room and hit the showers, when he sees someone at the crosswalk just a block down.</p><p>Pink hoodie - huge, practically a dress - with a denim jacket tugged over it, bare legs trailing down into white combat boots, a backpack slung over one shoulder. She spares little more than a glance at the cars along the street before striding forward, nose turned up and arms crossed in a way that’s so <em>New York</em> it makes him do a double take. That early morning pout, tired eyes, like she’s not totally awake yet. Her steps firm and determined in those heavy boots, she makes a beeline for the green siren across the street, never once glancing his direction.</p><p>It’s the first glimpse he’s had of her in a month.</p><p>Not for lack of trying, but have you seen his schedule? He’s barely been stateside at all for nearly 3 weeks. Not to mention that one of Tony’s interns is always eager to volunteer for a coffee run, and he’s not sure what he would say, a good reason for him to insist to go by himself.</p><p>With a glance at his phone - not due for a meeting for 3 more hours - he takes a deep breath and marches down the street, hands in his pockets, shoulders tucked. Less threatening to the passersby, who notice him, but say nothing. They’re in his neighborhood after all.</p><p>A bell chimes above the door when he walks in, and the same “Welcome to Starbucks!” greets him, but he’s only half-listening as he scans the cafe. She’s at the register, chatting with the barista there who hands her a steaming white mug.</p><p>“Ugh, thanks Chase, you’re a lifesaver,” she sighs, taking a sip.</p><p>“Hey, it’s all part of the job,” the barista jokes back, adjusting the cap on his head. He’s noticed Steve hovering 3 feet back, waiting his turn, and his eyes switch between Steve and the girl in front of him rapidly.</p><p>Their conversation ends, and the girl - the <em>agent</em> - takes her coffee to sit at a small table by herself, close to the windows, far enough back in a corner that she has a view of the whole cafe. Which she scans now as she sits, noting the two regulars in the opposite corner enjoying their customary flat whites, and…<em>Captain America.</em></p><p>Interesting.</p><p>She waits - he knows she’s waiting when he approaches the table, and she pretends not to know that he’s walking directly towards her, nose still tucked down towards her book, one hand poised at the handle of her coffee mug.</p><p>He clears his throat.</p><p>“Good morning,” she smiles when she looks up, the light from the window back-lighting her eyes, and the glow stuns him. “Haven’t seen you around for a while.”</p><p>“Haven’t been around,” he shrugs. Are his cheeks hot? He gestures towards the chair across from her. “You mind if I sit?”</p><p>“Not at all,” she shakes her head. He slides into the seat and she replaces her bookmark, setting the book aside. <em>Valley of the Dolls.</em> He’s not familiar.</p><p>“Here for your morning <em>Cap</em>puccino?” She quirks her eyebrows as her smile stretches, just shy of goofy. Quite proud of herself.</p><p>“Ha ha. Never been a big fan.”</p><p>“No?”</p><p>He shakes his head. “First thing in the morning? I like a dark roast. Something to really wake you up, you know?”</p><p>“Hm,” she muses. “Sure, I understand.”</p><p>“What about you?”</p><p>“Me?”</p><p>“Your coffee, I mean. You, uh…like coffee?” <em>Smooth, Rogers.</em></p><p>“Oh, yeah. <em>Love</em> coffee.” There’s a laugh behind her smile, and he wishes she wouldn’t hold it back. “Here lately, I’ve had a thing for <em>tall blondes.</em>”</p><p>The flush on his cheeks inches down his neck.</p><p>“Huh?”</p><p>“Tall blonde Americano to be specific - you should try the blonde espresso, it’s really good.” She takes a sip of hers, hiding her dimple behind the mug. “And I always add an extra shot. I like ‘em <em>strong.</em>”</p><p>God, even his ears are red, he knows it. The hell did he think he was gonna do when he came in here anyway, sweep her off her feet? He’s never been <em>that </em>good with dames, not even-</p><p>“I’m only joking-” she cracks up a little, giggling. “Sorry, the opportunity was too good, I just couldn’t resist.”</p><p>He sighs in relief, offers an embarrassed smile, and manages to relax a little in his chair.</p><p>“So…why are you here? Really?” she lifts an eyebrow, leaning one elbow on the table.</p><p>“Well…” and here it is, here goes nothing. “I thought - that is, I wondered, um, if you…might want to…get to know each other a little better.” Ouch. Thank <em>God</em> Bucky is nowhere near here.</p><p>“Get to know each other?”</p><p>“Yeah. Just, I mean, as friends.”</p><p>“Huh.”</p><p>Steve’s smile is sheepish, but it’s the one that always worked on his mother, and it seems to work on her. He can see the suspicion melt from her eyes, the interested quirk of her mouth as her fingers tap against the table.</p><p>“I’m flattered and all, really, but you should know that virtually everything you could want to ask me about…my past, my qualifications, my education, my current assignment-” she lifts her hands in a helpless gesture. “It’s all classified. Probably above even your clearance.”</p><p>“<em>Classified?</em>”</p><p>“There’s a reason why we never met, Captain.” He takes comfort in the fact that her smile is a little rueful.</p><p>“Oh.” He sits back in his chair, a thoughtful frown on his lips. Looks out the window at passing traffic as he thinks.</p><p>“Alright, then - how about a recommendation?” he turns back to her, eyes lit with curious confidence that catches her off guard.</p><p>“A recommendation?” she repeats, bemused.</p><p>“<em>Coffee,</em>” he grins, like it’s obvious, a wry quirk to his brows.</p><p>“Coffee,” she echoes again, chewing her lip as she returns his smile.</p><p>“Yeah - I always get the same thing,” he shrugs, eyes dancing. “Figured maybe I should branch out.”</p><p>Something she can tell him. Something they can share.</p><p>A quick glance at her watch - 20 minutes before she has to clock in.</p><p>“Alright then.” She stands from her seat, cracking her knuckles. “You wait here - I’m gonna pop behind the bar and make you something.”</p><p>He watches as she crosses the cafe, rounds the bar and gets to work whipping up…something. The steamer hisses as the milk is foamed, espresso grinding, and he can see her reach for some kind of syrup to pump into the cup. It only takes a minute or so before she’s done, returning with the cup presented triumphantly to him. The name “Cap” is scrawled on the front of the cup.</p><p>“What is it?”</p><p>“Just taste it first.”</p><p>The burst of caramel sweetness on his tongue nearly makes him gag - it’s a <em>lot</em>, whatever this drink is. It’s practically a dessert. Not bad, but he’s not sure how anyone could drink this in the morning. When he says so, she laughs out loud, head tipping back and mouth wide open.</p><p>“I make those for 41 all the time,” she grins. “It’s not an official menu drink - I invented it for her.”</p><p>“Yeah I can see this being her drink.”</p><p>“Oh, and when you go back to the tower, will you take her these?” She hands him a pastry bag. “I know they’re her favorite, and we had some that were about to expire.</p><p>He glances in the bag - two cookie dough cake pops and one birthday cake.</p><p>“I guess it’s not just Clint that spoils her, huh?”</p><p>Across the table, she just smiles and shrugs.</p><p>“I’m just here to make coffee.”</p><p>He takes another sip of the sugary concoction.</p><p>“Sure.”</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
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